Posted Tue, May 15, 2012 by Bill Irby
IS LOVE REAL?
I can imagine someone reading the title of these few words and saying any number of things. “Why of course it is!” or “Not for me, it isn’t.” One’s response probably has to do with one’s situation.
Posted Mon, May 7, 2012 by Bill Irby
POLITICS AND PREACHERS
When it comes to politics and the church and particularly the preachers for the church, opinions vary. Some take the position that the preacher should never utter a word that might be construed as politically partisan. Others suggest that he ought to speak vigorously in favor of a party or candidate, generally the one they favor at the moment.
Posted Mon, Apr 30, 2012 by Bill Irby
“YOU’RE KIDDING…RIGHT?”
Somebody tells you something you know for sure cannot be true, so you say, “You’re kidding, right?” This is one of those interpersonal communication devices we use on each other to keep a conversation going, hopefully in the right direction. It is an informal method of truth-checking which allows people to be somewhat playful even in serious conversation.
Posted Tue, Apr 24, 2012 by Bill Irby
SUE
Everyone has a list of great people. These aren’t the folks that the world necessarily considers great; these are the people who are great to and for us as individuals. Such a person for me and for many of us here at West Hobbs Street was Sue Thornton.
Posted Tue, Apr 24, 2012 by Bill Irby
FREEDOM OF, NOT FREEDOM FROM!
Posted Tue, Apr 17, 2012 by Bill Irby
RAIN
I am thankful for windows, specifically the two windows in my office. There were two windows in my old office but they were high up and the glass was frosted. In this office there are two big windows so I can see out. This morning I am seeing rain.
I am thankful for rain because of what it is and what it does.
Posted Wed, Apr 11, 2012 by Bill Irby
WILL YOU BE SAVED?
Here is a cheerful thought: The ultimate reality of life is death. There is a corollary to this: The important thing about death is your destiny. At the close of this life there is a separation. Sheep and goats, the right hand and the left, and those counted the good and the bad (Matthew 25:46). If we leave this place before Jesus comes our spirits will go into that realm of the departed spirits, Hades. Hades, as we follow the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16), is divided into two parts. Paradise or Abraham’s bosom is the place you want to go. Torments is the place you want to avoid. At all costs.
Posted Tue, Apr 3, 2012 by Bill Irby
A COHERENT VISION OF THE CHURCH
Every so often some latter day Gnostic comes along with what purports to be “new” truth about the church. All essential truth on all spiritual subjects, including the church, is as old as the New Testament. But these fellows, some who have been blessed by the church, find in the larger Christian world reasons to leave their Biblical heritage for one centered in the malleable minds of men. I could cite examples from the second century to the middle of last week, but the pattern is the same. Someone wants to do what they think best in place of what God has revealed. Sad but true.
Posted Tue, Mar 27, 2012 by Bill Irby
FOLLOWING GOD
In Ephesians 5:1 we find this: “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.” In 1 Corinthians 11:1 Paul wrote “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” Both of these quotations are from the NKJV; the old translation uses a form of the word “follow” for “imitate” in each instance. Taken together they provide a clear idea: Christians are to be as much like God as they can.
Posted Mon, Mar 19, 2012 by Bill Irby
“IT’S GONNA GET HOT!”
We recently received the wonderful news that we really, really needed to replace our twenty-six year old central heating and air conditioning unit, along with certain accoutrements associated therewith. Well, what are you going to do? This is Alabama and, as they say around here, “It’s gonna get hot!”